Doctor Patient Privilege threatened by Australian Government.

The Australian government is introducing a system on July1 where patient’s personal medical records are to be stored online under government control in Canberra.

The Government has not told the general public, the voters and is introducing the system by stealth making doctors sign up to a contract to participate .The doctors who do not participate will be penalized . The patients do not have a say in the storage of their records in Canberra and they will only have limited access.

This is unlike Mimedikal .com the secure online storage vault of patient medical records – where only the patient can give permission and only the patient can authorize access.

The government has spent $466 million, of which about half was spent producing a 300 page working paper. This system is not secure and can be accessed by unauthorised computers.

The state of the contract to doctors has been leaked and The Australian Government’s Department of Health and Aging has been forced to pull a diabolical draft plan giving bureaucrats powers to search general practices and scrutinize their records, without the patients consent or knowledge.

Under the draft proposals GP doctors wanting to take part in the personally controlled electronic health records (PCEHR) scheme being rolled out from July 1 would have had to sign a contract allowing the department search and seizure powers under the proposal..

A leaked draft of the contract stated that the system operator – currently the department of health – “may at reasonable times on giving reasonable notice to you: access your premises; access your information technology systems; require the provision by you of records and information;… inspect and copy documentation;… interview and require a meeting with any of your employees.”

This would take place without the patients knowledge – for instance all records of infections, genetic testing, investigations. For females, vaginal infections episodes and treatment would all be exposed to governmental gaze and the information would become the property of the government and patients have no right to their own private information about their own bodies

It is not clear why the department deemed the powers necessary, with the document only saying it was for: “investigation of any problems associated with the [personally controlled electronic health records] system”. The health department now appears to have backtracked, with a spokeswoman yesterday saying a “revised draft” was being developed and would soon be released for consultation.

In response to the initial draft plans, Dr Mike Civil, the RACGP’s e-health spokesman, said he was “shocked”.

One reader wrote on the Australian Doctor website: “You get a lot of extra work, you don’t get paid at all for that, and you get subjected to random raids by grand inquisitors violating your patient’s confidentiality… What else do you want? Three public whippings a day?”

The department has not even involved the public whose records they want to appropriate or misappropriate without the individuals consent.

The proposal as evidenced in the Senate hearings are supported by the insurance companies – the submission was that they should have access to the records so that they can plan their business model more effectively.

The implications of patients medical records contained in the government data base are horrendous. If a patient has an isolated bout of depression it may affect their employment situation. If a woman has a termination the online record can be accessed. If a family has heart disease insurers and employers would possibly be able to gain authorised or unauthorised access [remember this is a government department who has patient records – not the patient’s doctor – not the patient] the patients’ medical records can be accessed during court processes unlike the patient owned and controlled record system at Mimedikal.com.

Patients are advised to protect their own personal records and not authorize their doctor to divulge their personal details. The health advice and medical treatment should be kept private. Patients should take possession of the record of their health visit in their own secure vault as is found in Mimedikal.com.

Why You Should Store Your Medical Records Online.

In medical emergency situations, fast access to a patient’s medical records online can speed up medical procedures and save lives.

However we feel strongly that the patient’s online medical records should stay under the patients control at all times and not be privy to government bureaucrats or controlled by the government.

At http://mimedikal.com only the patient possesses the key to access the records. The patient can request that their doctor loads the medical records to their secure online medical records storage vault at each visit.

Should a patient be involved in an accident or medical emergency that renders them unconscious, hospital staff can access their online medical records via a USB card carried by the patient.

After the emergency the patient can change their key by accessing the website, this ensures full access control by the patient at all times.

MIMEDIKAL.COM USB CARD.

To protect your interest and to prevent potential discrimination by unauthorized access to your own health records, you cannot trust any governmental agency.

Doctors value the privacy of doctor – patient confidentiality. In some countries it is protected by law.

So to protect yourself, do not authorize your doctor to add your medical records to the government data base – be wary of;